Esophagoplasty for Esophageal Stenosis Due to Caustic Injuries in Children-Personal Experience (Abstract)

Background: In pacients with esophageal stenosis caused by liquid caustic injury, with no response to nonsurgical treatment methods, the esophageal replacement represents the only way for a quasinormal life.

Material and methods: The authors report their experience regarding esophagoplasty for caustic esophageal strictures in 49 cases for a period of twelve years. Two esophagoplasty techniques have been used (reversed gastric tube in 33 cases, colonic conduit in 16 cases). The stripping of the scarred esophagus was accomplished in 29 cases, with the placement of the graft behind the hilum of the lungs (27 gastric and 2 colonic interpositions).

Results: In 36 cases the results were good at a follow-up of up to 12 years. Criteria like physical development, social behaviour, deglutition and contrast studies were noted. In 13 cases, complications occurred and four pacients died.

Conclusion: This study is not intended to be a comparative one; the small number of cases in our series does not allow concluding which technique is the best. Nevertheless, the authors did not notice major differences in the outcome of the patients treated with either of the techniques.